April 2023 saw fairly average weather on Grandfather Mountain, according to data recorded at the park’s official weather reporting stations.
The average high temperature for April 2023 was 52.83 degrees Fahrenheit, with an average low of 38.19 degrees and a mean of 45.51 degrees.
The warmest temperature recorded last month was 66 degrees on April 20, 14 degrees shy of the mountain’s record April high of 80 degrees, observed April 7, 2010.
Generally, April continues to bring winter weather to Grandfather Mountain before more spring-like conditions arrive. April 2 saw the coldest temperature recorded last month with 23 degrees. The lowest temperature ever observed for this month (not counting wind chill) is 5 degrees on April 7, 1982.
The weather station on the Mile High Swinging Bridge noted five days in April with a wind gust higher than 60 mph. On April 1, the weather station at the top recorded a wind gust of 76.4 mph, while the month’s highest recorded sustained wind speed clocked in at 54.7 mph on April 2. The highest gust ever recorded on Grandfather Mountain was 124 mph, observed Feb. 25, 2019.
The weather station near the Swinging Bridge reported 5.70 inches of precipitation in April 2023. Precipitation at the top of the mountain includes rain and the liquid equivalent of any frozen precipitation (when applicable).
Observations recorded near the park’s Wilson Center for Nature Discovery saw 6.47 inches of precipitation and no snowfall. Precipitation is also measured at the latter location, as high winds can make it difficult to record accurate observations at the top.
The mountain’s rainiest April was recorded in 2018, when 12.72 inches were observed near the bridge. The driest April on record was observed in 1975, when 0.72 inches were measured at the top.
There were 19 days of recorded liquid precipitation (rain and the liquid equivalent of frozen precipitation, when applicable) for April 2023, five days short of the record 24 days in 1984. The day last month with the highest amount of this precipitation observed was April 28, when 1.78 inches were recorded at the top. The day with the highest amount of precipitation observed on record for April was April 21, 1992, when the weather station noted 4.65 inches.
Weather Reporting
The Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation records and reports data in two different ways:
- The park maintains an automated weather station at the top of the Mile High Swinging Bridge. The N.C. State Climate Office assists the foundation in calibrating the machines and ensuring overall accuracy of data.
- Grandfather Mountain has been an active member of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Cooperative Observer Program since 1955 by reporting weather data from locations near the Mile High Swinging Bridge and the Nature Museum (now the Wilson Center for Nature Discovery).
For more information on weather at Grandfather Mountain, visit www.grandfather.com/weather.